Holder for shopping bags



1936- H. o. BECKLIN HOLDER FOR SHOPPING BAGS Filed May 11, 19:54

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Patented May 26, 1936 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 2,041,691 HOLDER roa SHOPPING BAGS Portland, Oreg.

Application May 11, 1934, Serial No. 725,203

3 Claims.

My invention relates to shopping bags provided with two string handles secured to the opposite walls of the bag, respectively, and the object of my invention is to provide a rigid, inexpensive bag holder which may be used to render the carrying of the bag with its contents more comfortable to the fingers.

Bag holders designed for such use have heretofore been known, but they had to be held in place; in other Words, they were detached at all times from the string handles. By my invention I purpose to provide a bag holder which, while initially detached from the string handles of the shopping bag, is adapted to be temporarily, firmly secured in place to one of said string handles, and the other string handle may be then engaged with, or disengaged from the holder, as required for convenience in filling the bag, or for carrying it about.

I attain my object in a bag holder consisting of an elongate piece of rigid material, preferably wood, and preferably having smooth outer faces, and transversely curved on the lower face so as to render it comfortable to the fingers, and provided with two longitudinal slots in its upper face to receive the string handles of the shopping bag, respectively; the string handles of conventional shopping bags being about of uniform cross section or thickness; one of said slots being narrower than the normal width of said string handles so that the string handle inserted therein will be clamped in place, and the holder become temporarily aflixed to such string handle.

Further details of my invention are hereinafter fully described with reference to the accompanying drawing:

Fig. 1 of the drawing represents a perspective View of the upper portion of a so-called shopping bag with my bag holder attached to the string handles thereof;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged drawing, in perspective, of my holder;

Fig. 2a is a longitudinal section on a plane indicated by the line 211' of Fig. 2;

Fig. 3 illustrates a modification in the construction of my bag holder;

Fig. 3a; is a longitudinal section on the plane indicated by 3a of Fig. 3; and

Fig. 4 shows the near end of my bag holder with its modification as shown by Fig. 3 and illustrates the utility of such modification.

a and a, represent the two walls of a shopping bag provided with carrying handles b and I). My bag holder consists of an elongate rigid bar 0 preferably made of wood, and preferably smoothed on its outside face :1 and rounded at its under face e so as to render it comfortable to the hand carrying the bag. The upper face of the holder is provided with a' slot f and a second slot g. The width of the slot 9 is such as to receive freely one of the string handles of the shopping bag, such string handles having substantially uniform cross-section or thickness, as mentioned. The width of the slot f is purposely made narrower than the cross-section of the string handles so that the string handle to be placed in this slot 1 has to be forced into it and in consequence becomes clamped in place therein; thus the bag holder becomes temporarily afiixed to the latter string handle and a part thereof.

My holder is preferably made of wood, and has the slots 1, g formed by cutting kerfs in one face of the piece of wood by a pair of parallel rotary saws; in that way simultaneously cutting two slots leaving relatively narrow walls on each side of the slots; the saws being of such thickness that the saw cutting the slot 9 is adapted in width to admit either of the string handles freely therein, while the slot 3 is out substantially narrower so that the string handle to be inserted therein has to be forced into place. The inherent elasticity of the wooden walls incloslng the sides of the narrower slot permits these walls to be slightly deflected or sprung, and thus facilitates the forcing of the string handle into place in the narrower slot, the walls of which then exert a clamping action on the string handle and hold it firmly in place.

The construction shown by Fig. 3 differs from that shown by Fig. 2 in that the ends of the longitudinal slots f and g, which correspond to the slots and g of Fig. 2 are provided with vertical, downwardly extending end slots h and 2', the cross-sections of which slots are similar to the main portion of said. slots so that the portions of the string handle I) secured in the slots I will also be clamped in the end slots h.

The purpose of the end slots h and i is to so hold the two string handles 1) and b as to keep the mouth of the bag closed as much as possible, and the depth of the end slots h, 2 should be sufficient to cause the string handles to stay in the end slots when the bag is carried.

The construction shown by Fig. 3 also takes away undue lateral strain from the walls 7, k, and thus prevents these walls being broken away by such strain.

From the description given it will be noted that my bag holder may be inexpensively made, as mentioned, and. is not only convenient in that it relieves the strain of the string handles on the fingers, but is temporarily permanently secured to one of the string handles so that the bag may be readily opened for receiving its load, suspended by one string handle, while the other string handle may be removed and reinserted in the holder as required.

I claim:

1. As a holder for shopping bags including two handles secured to opposite walls of the bag, and made of string of substantial uniform cross-section, an elongate bar provided in one'face with parallel slots of substantial depth extending from end to end of the bar, one of said slots being adapted in width to admit either of said string handles freely, the other of said slots being substantially narrower and requiring the string handle to be forced therein, whereby the holder becomes temporarily afiixed to, and a part of the latter string handle, while the other string handle may be freely inserted in or removed from the other slot of the holder.

2. As a holder for shopping bags including two handles secured to opposite walls of the bag, and

made of string of substantial uniform cross-section, an elongate wooden bar provided in one face with parallel slots of substantial depth extending from end to end of the bar, with relatively narrow walls inclosing the sides of said slots, one of said slots being adapted in width to admit either of said string handles freely, the other of said slots being substantially narrower and requiring the string handle to be forced therein,

the slight inherent elasticity of said walls facilitating the insertion of the string handle into the narrower slot, and the walls of such slot exerting a clamping action on the string handle inserted therein, whereby the holder becomes temporarily affixed to, and'a part of the latter string handle, while the other string handle may be freely inserted in or removed from the other slot of the holder.

3. The article described in foregoing claim 2 in which the said longitudinally extending slots 20 terminate in perpendicular extensions of the slot across the ends of the holder.

HERMAN O. BECKLIN. 

